Pick Me Up Off the Floor
by redunicorns01
Summary: They don’t exchange names at first. He already knows who she is and all he wants to do is just help her, but he’s an unknown to her and there’s a line drawn between them. But when he sees her all sound just seems to stop. LP oneshot


I've been writing this one for a few days now while I'm supposed to be studying for my exams. I got to give credit to The Verve Pipe's _The Fresman _on this because it's pretty much been on repeat for the past week, except it has nothing to do with the song. Just so you know it's based like before season 1, I guess it's my interpretation. Anyway it might move a bit fast, but whatever. Title from a Jack's Mannequin song.

* * *

They're nine years old and he can see her crying across the playground. No one will go near her, not even her best friend. Maybe it's because she wants to be alone, he thinks it's because no one knows what to say to the crying girl.

He's not entirely sure why she's crying, but he walks over to her anyway thinking maybe, just maybe, there's something he can do or say to make her feel better.

"Hi." His quiet voice says when he's directly in front of her blocking the sun from her.

She sniffles and wipes away the tears she's clearly not trying to hide. "Go away." She says without even looking up at him.

He can see dirt stains on her jeans from sitting there in the grass for the past hour and her blue shirt is wet from the tears. Her face is red and puffy and he can literally see the stains on her face.

"What's wrong?" He asks ignoring her demand.

"You wouldn't care."

"That's not true." He's shaking his head, though she doesn't bother to look up to see it.

She's staring at his sneakers as she pulls the grass out from the ground. He can still hear her sniffle when a tear sheds. She's wondering why this boy won't go away, why he wants to know her problems. She's not sure, but she kind of wants to tell him. It's none of his business and she has no idea who he is and she hasn't even looked up at him. But he cares. And when she does look up he's wearing this comforting smile and he has these blue eyes that just seem to call her name somehow.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" He asks sitting down next to her, not caring if she agreed or not.

"No." She shakes her head slowly, because there's really nothing he can do. He can't bring back her mom. Though he is kind of helping now by just sitting next to her.

"Do you…do you want my cookies?" He asks showing her the small bag of chocolate chip cookies he's had in his hand. She sees that boyish grin he wears and she sees he's totally serious. She's not sure if he thinks these will make her feel better or not, but it helps some. "My mom made them. They're really good."

She hesitates to take them, but she can see that he really wants her to have them. "Thanks." She says quietly taking them from him. She opens the bag and takes one out, tearing it in half and handing him some. They share a smile before taking a bite and he was right – they are really good. He's just glad he got her to smile.

They don't exchange names. He already knows who she is, but he's just an unknown to her. As he looks back on it now he thinks it might have been better not to. He wouldn't have expected much from her if she knew his name.

The teacher calls for them and neither really wants to go inside just yet. Lucas stands and holds out his hand for her to take. They're soft and bigger than her tiny hands and she smiles when he's still holding it when they get back to class.

It's crazy, really, how he thinks they're friends one minute and then the next they're not. He showed up to school the next day feeling on top of the world. Then he sees her and he smiles towards her, but Brooke's near and Nathan's near and she seems to be feeling better than the day before, and it's as if that day never happened for her.

He doesn't take it personally like he probably should. He knows who his friends are and where he comes from and his situation. He's not part of that crowd and he doesn't necessarily want to be. But _she_ is.

They're nine years old and there's already a line drawn between them.

--

He's amazed with how careless she is. He'll see her walking down the street with her earbuds in and purse in hand and she doesn't stop when people say hi to her, most of time she doesn't even acknowledge it. Some people would call that pure rudeness; he just thinks she's too preoccupied.

He'll see her driving that old car of hers and she doesn't hesitate to lay on that horn or run red lights. It's unsafe, yes, but she's Peyton Sawyer – she has places to be.

It might be creepy for him to know all these things about her and more. It's really not. They're just observations he's picked up on while he just so happened to be staring out the window of his mom's café. His best friend teases him about how he's in love with the girl that doesn't even know he exists and he wants to deny it, but he can't. He's been infatuated with this curly blonde since he was eight years old and saw her sitting on the swings kicking her little legs back and forth just trying to fly. He wonders if she's still trying to fly away.

Her laugh is contagious to him and that smile she brings to the table is unlike anything he's ever seen before.

He's completely smitten with this girl.

But she's sixteen and there's nothing wrong with her or her world.

She's blossomed into this angry, troubled teenager and he's the only one that can see past it all. She's a mystery to everyone but him. Her mom's gone and she just doesn't feel pretty enough, or good enough, or smart enough. She can't get away from it all yet and she's supposedly too young to have her own opinion. He's not really sure why she's always so angry with people or herself, but he finds it attracting.

He notices she's not afraid to express herself, but he doesn't realize how much she holds back. He can see her drawing in a sketchbook across the quad and he wonders why he's never seen any of her drawings in art shows at school. He can hear her rock music playing from a mile away when she's driving down the street and it's not exactly rocket science to notice she's different from her other friends.

She wears band tee shirts and converse. He's never seen her in a dress or heels, but he knows that she has the legs to pull it off. She's a cheerleader and that surprises even him. He just assumes it's because her best friend's one too. Her boyfriend's a jackass, but she's kind of bitchy too so they probably make a good couple.

He finds himself wanting her in every way possible. He wants to show her that there's a world of happiness and that she doesn't have to be angry all the time. He wants to give her romance and excitement.

He thinks he might_ need_ to show her all that.

--

He's working in the café one morning when she walks in out of nowhere.

She storms in a hurry with her converse smacking against the floor and her hand stuffed in her pockets. She's looking around the room just looking for _something_.

Lucas is in the back watching her every move through the opening while he's supposed to be washing dishes. He sees her take a seat at the counter as she waits for someone to wait on her. He doesn't hesitate to grab a menu and notepad.

She looks just plain uncomfortable sitting there. She's never been here. None of her friends have ever been here. Because this is _his_ place. She, or Nathan, or anyone of that crowd doesn't come here.

"Can I help you?" He asks setting down the menu in front of her.

"Yeah, what's good here?" She asks picking up the menu and skimming over it.

"Everything." He smiles. She shoots him a glare he's not sure is playful or not, but she has a feeling it's probably true. She's heard rumors about this place and everyone says the food is to die for. She just never got around to stopping by, mostly because she knows he'll be here.

"I'll just take a coffee. Unless you got any whiskey back there." She nods to the back towards the kitchen and hands him back the menu. He can't help but notice the slight smile she wears when she makes a joke.

"Bad day?" He asks reaching for the coffee pot and grabbing a mug from under the counter. He sets down the cup and begins to pour the coffee right in front of her. He smiles at her when that cute little sigh escapes her lips. Her shoulders slump and now she feels just fine being here. Maybe it's the atmosphere, maybe it's something else. This little conversation or whatever it is that they're having all seems so normal. Like they're just two friends who've been doing this forever. Like they're not Peyton Sawyer and Lucas Scott.

"You wouldn't care." She says hiding the smirk behind her cup.

"That's not true." He says seriously. She looks at him, completely shocked that he had just said those words, and then they're both standing there as if they're both reliving the same memory. "What are you doing here?" He asks harsher than intended. It's his shoulders that slump now and he's about to apologize, but she holds her hand up in understanding.

She doesn't answer him. Just shrugs her shoulders and goes back to her coffee. He's still staring at her, expecting an answer. A car drives by the café that's playing some loud, obnoxious rap music and Peyton turns to see if it's someone in particular. Lucas doesn't look to see, he's too busy seeing her reaction.

"You're hiding from Nathan, aren't you?"

"Not hiding. More like avoiding."

"Why?"

"We got into a fight." She answers simply because it's so natural for her and Nathan to be fighting. Lucas just nods and walks back into the kitchen for a new pot of coffee. "He's kind of an ass." She states randomly.

"So I've heard." Lucas says flatly. He knows she knows their situation. You're living under a rock if you don't. It makes liking Peyton a lot harder when she's supposedly in love with his estranged brother.

He grabs her empty cup and takes it to be refilled for her. When he returns with hers he has one for him as well in his other hand. He watches as she takes sip from to almost spitting it back out and he's there smiling at her.

"Is there alcohol in this?" She whispers, leaning over the counter at him. He places his finger over his lips telling her to keep it a secret. His mom doesn't exactly know about the stash he and Haley hid back in the kitchen for when the two got stuck closing up at nights.

Peyton smiles and mouths a 'thank you'. She really needed this and she kind of likes how he knew that.

"So," Lucas starts taking a drink form his mug. "What'd Nathan do now?"

"I really shouldn't be talking to you about this."

"And why not?"

"Because…because you're his brother."

"Not really. I mean, we have the same dad, but other than that we have nothing in common."

"Except your love for basketball." She mumbles. He shoots her a confused look wondering how she could have known that. "I've seen you playing in the park before."

"So you've been watching me." He teases kinking his brow.

"No." She shakes her head. "I've just seen you while driving by."

"I know." It's her turn to shoot a look now and he can only chuckle. He doesn't really care that she knows that now. He has no reason to lie to her. "I can hear your music a mile away. Last week you were listening to Travis. This week it's La Rocca."

She just looks at him. No smile or anything. Just blank. And she's wondering how they've never talked like this before. His eyes tell her a story she's dying to know and his smile is sweet and isn't forced like Nathan's usually is with her. She looks at him and there's just something there that she's never seen in Nathan. And she wonders how these two brothers can be similar one minute and then nothing alike the next.

"Nathan lied to me." She admits quietly only loud enough for him to hear. Lucas sets his mug down and walks over to lean over the counter towards her. "I know it sounds stupid and really girly, but he told me straight to my face that he wasn't cheating on me. And today when I went to his house to hangout there was a girl in his bed."

She should be crying or at least have tears surfacing, but she doesn't. Really she expected this from Nathan and that sounds really bad now that she thinks about it. They've never been good together, but they can't seem to be apart from each other. Nathan stormed into her life with his cocky grin and troubled family life and he just seemed to mix with her attitude and problems. He was there. He's just always been there. She can't really imagine him not ever being there.

"I came here because it's the only place I knew he wouldn't look for me." She says offering a sad smile. "And if he did find me then he'd be really pissed and that'd be kind of a plus." She smiles shrugging her shoulder

"You know," he sighed looking down at his hands, deciding to ignore her attempt to lighten the mood. His brother could be a real piece of work sometimes. "The worst thing about being lied to is knowing that you weren't worth the truth."

She doesn't say anything. She's not entirely sure of what to say to that. It's probably the most…honest thing she's ever heard. And it sums up her entire relationship with Nathan.

Peyton looks down to her fingers and she notices that Lucas follows too. He wants to know her every movement.

"I better get going." She almost whispers slipping out a few bills to pay for her coffee and whiskey before standing and walking towards the doorway.

"Why? So you can go home and wait for his apology?" He says, feeling like a jackass when the words slip out. But honestly he thought after that little piece of advice she would finally realize what an ass his brother is.

But he's betting she already knows.

She stops instantly and turns back to him. He sees the glare on her face and he knows he just pissed her off. "Look you don't know me."

He chuckles turning his back to her to put her cash in the cash register. This girl has so much fire. His brother is only putting it out with each passing day. "Let me ask you something," He says turning back leaning against the counter with his hands resting on top. "If Nathan called you right now and started apologizing from head to toe, would you take him back?" He asks looking straight into her eyes. She finds it strange how he does that. Most guys are checking out her ass. He's looking at her eyes for this story that she's supposed to have, these answers that she's not sure she has. He's definitely not like other guys.

"What do you think I should do?" She asks, both knowing she's avoiding his question. They both know it's because of the answer.

He shrugs. "Doesn't matter what I think. You'll probably just do the opposite anyway." He says bitterly.

Her brow furrows and she lets out a loud huff before turning back to the door and storming out. That's two Scott brothers that have managed to piss her off today.

Except she knows Lucas is right. She just doesn't want to admit it yet. Her and Nathan's relationship is strange and the two are always either breaking up or they're always getting back together more. She knows it's because most of the things he does are mistakes and we all make mistakes, but Nathan just never seems to learn form them. But he's all she has.

And she knows that by tonight the two will be back together like Lucas predicted.

--

"Bullcrap!"

"It's true!" Lucas argues with his best friend.

Haley's always been different. Everything about her is. She's beautiful, but doesn't let anyone know it, he's sure she doesn't even know it. She's brilliant, whether in school or with life. She's quirky and sarcastic and funny. She's been by Lucas' side since as far back as he can remember. He's told her everything and she's there to take it all. She won't put up with your BS, but she's there to listen and give advice.

Maybe that's why he's her best friend.

They're standing on the rooftop of his mom's café where they built their very own golf course. She's swinging around a putter and neither is really keeping score on their game that they're supposed to be playing.

After today, Lucas felt he had to tell Haley. He knew she wouldn't believe him, but really she's the only one that knows about his 'Peyton crush'.

"You expect me to believe that Peyton Sawyer just happened to walk into the café today and you two actually had a real conversation?" She looked up from her golf ball and over to him with a smirk and kinked brow.

"Yes!"

"I'm still not believing it." She laughed to herself, turning her attention back to her stroke.

"She's…she's different, Haley. She's nothing like the people she hangs out with." He says delicately.

Haley steps down from the platform she was standing on and over to him with her putter still in hand. "So she's different?" She asks. He nods. "Like you and me different?" Lucas nods again. "Then why does she hangout with Brooke Davis and Nathan Scott?" She asks, not caring if hearing his brother's name made him mad.

"I don't know. Maybe they're the only people that have ever been there for her."

"So if I went up to her tomorrow at school and say 'Hey, Peyton, you want to hangout Friday?' then we'll instantly become best friends." She says sarcastically, faking her cheeriness.

He's about to speak, but she cuts him off. "Luke, listen to me, okay? Peyton Sawyer is not like us. Just because you had one conversation with her doesn't mean she's gonna be inviting you over to hangout. So don't hang on to this, okay?"

He's not sure why he isn't arguing with her. Maybe because she's right. Or half right. All he knows is that maybe Peyton isn't like Haley, but she is like him. Lost and a little insecure. And he knows Haley's right when she says that Peyton's not coming to talk to him again. Especially since he pissed her off and he's sure her and Nathan are back together.

Haley doesn't know about that time when they were nine years old and he thinks for this reason alone is why he never told her. He knows she means well, but he has a feeling that there's someone else that just might know him a little bit better.

--

"Hey." His voice is quiet and timid and he looks almost afraid to be here. But it's Nathan. He's changing moods daily. One minute he's cocky and a total guy and the next he's sweet to her and he really looks in love with her. But those times are only when they're alone, not out in public because it might ruin his 'image'. "I tried calling you. Where were you?"

"Places."

"Can we talk?"

"There's nothing to talk about." She says sternly getting up from her bed and going to her collection of records. Not once does she look him in the eye and they both know the reason why.

"Peyton please. I'm sorry. My dad was riding me yesterday and you weren't…"

"Why do you always blame this on Dan? It's always his fault."

"Peyton…"

"No! It's either my fault or your dad's fault. It's_ never _your fault." She says angrily pointing her skinny finger in his direction.

"Just let me explain." He says walking into the room a few more inches.

"There's nothing to explain, Nathan! We suck as a couple and frankly, I'm getting tired of it." She says planting a hand on her hip and the other stretching around her torso. He knows that's not a good stance.

He doesn't hesitate to take those last few feet and wrap her up in his strong arms. She doesn't miss how none of it feels right. His touch or smell or sensitivity. It all feels so forced. But she puts up with it anyway.

"No we don't." He says seriously, like he believes it and she's not sure how to interpret that. "And I know I place the blame on my dad and basketball and you and I'm sorry. But you have to understand that this is all I got. Basketball and you. And I can't lose either one. I promise, Peyton, I won't…I won't be an idiot anymore. So please, just…can we make up already?"

She's not sure whether to believe it or not. It sounds true and it looks true and somewhere deep down in her it all feels true. But she's just not sure if it is. She's heard it all before. And she knows basketball is his only escape route out of Tree Hill, but what is she? She doesn't _feel_ like his girlfriend or his friend. She feels like the girl keeping him company until the scouts start calling.

And what's worse is that she feels OK with that.

She smiles up at him and that's his answer that everything's OK between them. He doesn't know that her smile is completely fake. He leans down and kisses her gently as his hands tighten around her hips. That kiss and that touch doesn't feel OK to her. Nothing feels OK to her.

Lucas was right.

--

After Nathan left she decided to go to the record store. She's not exactly sure why. She needed to find some new music and maybe a little clarity. This has always seemed to be that place where she can just be herself. Everywhere else just feels like she's being a fake. Maybe she is. And why wouldn't she come here? Some kickass music and a thirty- something year old guy that seems to know her better than she'd like. It's all so perfect. Like her own little corner of the world that's just hers and no one else's.

She never expected to see _him_ here. Lucas.

He's sifting through a Jack's Mannequin collection and she feels completely bombarded because that's exactly the kind of clarity she was looking for today. But he's there, going through her music, taking his sweet time, and he has no clue she's standing there waiting for him to move. She doesn't want him here or there or anywhere in this store for that matter. She wants to be alone and that doesn't include him.

"What are you doing here?" She asks bluntly walking up to the bins he's searching through.

Lucas looks up at her, almost scared of the scowl she has. Her hands on her hips and feet planted to the ground. He doesn't miss how she's asking the same question he asked her this very morning.

"Music." He says flatly, kinking a brow as if it was the most obvious reason why he would be here in a record store looking for something to listen to. "I'm sorry. Do you want me to move?" He asks with a smirk on his face. She nods and he steps back with his hands in the air walking back to another part of the store.

She steps up to where Lucas was just standing and begins flipping the CD's back one by one.

"Damnit." She curses under breath. She looks over and sees that the CD she came in here looking for is in his hand. "You took the last Jack's Mannequin CD."

"Excuse me?" He says glancing up from the bens of albums.

"The last Jack's Mannequin CD. You took it." She said pointing to the album in his hand. "It was the one I wanted."

"Oh." He says glancing down at the album and then back to her. "Well here." He says handing it to her.

"No thanks. You had it first."

"No really, take it. You look like you need it more than I do."

How does he know that?

"Thanks." She says quietly taking the CD from his hand. They go back to their bens, each looking for something, anything, to help them. She can hear him in the corner singing to himself and she recognizes that song and she knows where it came from.

"What was that?" She asks walking over to him.

"Nothing."

"You were singing." She smirks.

"I was humming." He says as a matter of fact.

"What was it?"

"You know what it was." He says because he knows that she knows. She's different and her music is different. But it's exactly like his.

"I know, but I want to hear you say it."

He chuckles, bowing his head. She doesn't miss his rosy cheeks and she likes how she can make him nervous. _"Have you ever been alone in a crowded room when I'm here with you?"_

She's struck hard but that one lyric. She already knew what it was, but hearing him say it out loud in that tone broody tone of voice that he does gave her a whole new meaning. It's basically her life.

"You OK?" He asks seeing her blank expression.

"No." She says, but smiles anyway. "Nathan and I got back together." She says knowing he would understand. And she doesn't know how or why he would understand. She's never talked to him before except for that one time when they were kids and he knows nothing about her life or her relationship, but its like just _gets_ it.

He wants to apologize for earlier, but he feels like he shouldn't have to and she knows that she doesn't have to.

"You want to talk about it?"

"I think I we talked enough about it this morning." She says throwing in one of those small smiles he's began collecting.

He just nods and tears away from her eyes for a split second. "Well, I…I guess I'll get going then."

"Yeah. I got to meet Nathan anyway." She explains and they both can tell she's not really happy about it.

"I'll see you around then."

"Yeah."

He nods and maneuvers around her before walking up to the counter to pay for his things and just like that he's gone. And she feels empty after that.

--

The great thing about having your own door is that you can leave whenever you want.

He can't sleep and tossing and turning was never really his thing. So he climbs out of bed and throws on a shirt and grabs his ball and quietly makes his way out his door and down the pathway.

It's around midnight, but he doesn't really care when there's a basketball in his hand. He's dribbling the whole way to the Rivercourt and his last worry is the people he's probably waking up when he passes by their house. He's there in record time and he doesn't hesitate to get down to work.

This has always been his place. It's his own little corner of the world. And no one, not Nathan or his dad or any Raven, can take that from him. And he feels powerful just knowing that. This court is like his second home. He's here more than he probably should be, but he doesn't care.

He knows every inch of it and he uses it to his advantage. He's won many games here and has fought like hell to not lose many. Every time he's here he gets the feeling of acceptance. He's never had that feeling anywhere else before. He doesn't have to be anyone but himself here, no pretends or fakes, just him and he likes it that way.

This is his world.

No one can take that from him.

It's his twenty-second shot in a row and it's not even close to his record yet. He plans to stay until he beats it. The cold weather is his last priority and he doesn't really notice it until a gush of wind comes at him. But he just keeps going.

He's at thirty and is midair when he sees those blonde curls. He lands back on the ground with his eyes on her and the ball in the air and he doesn't hear it when it swishes because all sounds stop when she's around.

"Nice shot." She says grabbing the rebound and throwing the ball back and forth between her hands. "What are you doing here?"

"Couldn't sleep. You?"

"Wide awake." She shrugged.

He nods and watches as she walks over to the bleachers with the ball he's sure she's not giving back.

"Does Nathan know you're here?"

"It's midnight. No one knows I'm here." She dribbles the ball a few times and it's clear she's never done this before. He watches with amusement as she attempts a simple shot that any player would make, but of course she makes it look so look difficult.

"You've never done this before have you?" He asks with a smile, grabbing her rebound. He walks over to where she was and showed her how it's really supposed to be done. He makes it.

"I cheer. I don't play."

"What's up with that by the way? You're not exactly cheery."

"Thanks?" She says kinking her brow. Lucas goes to apologize, but she gets it. "My mom used to cheer." She says quietly knowing he'd know what she meant.

"Yeah."

"Isn't that why you play basketball? To be closer to your dad in some wicked way?"

"No." He shakes his head. "I play because it makes me feel good. Like you and your music – it's an escape from everything. When things get too much for me I just come here and it makes everything better."

"So why don't you ever join the team?" She asks, though she thinks she already knows. "You know you're good, so why not be a part of that?"

He shrugs. "Because I've never been given a chance. I don't belong on their court in their gym. Look at me Peyton," he says staring over at her. "My place isn't there. It's right here." He motions to the concrete they're standing on.

"You don't think too highly of yourself, do you?"

"Well what about you and your art?" He asks before he can really process exactly what he's saying. "You think no one doesn't see you drawing out on the quad at school, but we never see the actual work. Why is that? You scared?"

"I'm not afraid of what people think of me." She says sternly putting her hands on her hips. "Art just helps me deal with all this drama."

"Well, what are you afraid of?" He asks, trapping the ball to his hip and staring over at her green eyes.

She's not entirely sure. She's convinced herself that nothing scares her. It's not the image she wants. She doesn't want to admit her true feelings to this guy standing in front of her that she's only had three conversations with in her entire life.

His intense blue eyes bore into her and she's sure it's past just her eyes and further into something she herself can't confess to yet.

"Why?" She asks suddenly, not caring for his previous question.

"Why what?"

"When we were nine, you saw me on the playground crying. You gave me your mom's cookies, why? Why'd you talk to the crying girl?" It's a not so random question that she's felt the need to ask for years now. He was just a random kid that helped in everyway possible without really trying to. It wasn't until later on that she learned who he really was and what his story was. He was his best friend's estranged brother. She knew Nathan hated him and she didn't want to hurt Nathan by being friends with Lucas.

So she stuck with what she knew and who she knew and she tried to block out the boy that helped her most after such a tragedy.

"Because you were crying and you looked like you needed a hand…and maybe some cookies."

They're quiet for a moment. It's not awkward or weird. It's comfortable and she's wondering why she never left that side of the line she grew up on to be with_ him_. He wants to know her and she wants him too. Nathan's not this and_ this_ is exactly what she needs.

But crossing over that line is a scary thing. And she just said that she doesn't care about what people think of her, but really she kind of does. High school is tough. You're classmates are going to judge you, you're friends are going to betray you, and really all you have is yourself. At least she believes so. But he's always been there. Whether it's been in the background or he's just been there and she's never took the time to look up.

"This scares me." She blurts out taking a step forward until she's standing right in front of him. He's staring at her strangely, but is begging for her to do what he thinks she's going to do. She has to fight the urge to reach out and just touch him. "Being here. With you. Alone."

He smiles and gives her a nod. He reaches up and moves the loose curl out of her face and behind her ear and it's really the first time he's ever really _touched_ her.

Nathan's not on her mind. She could really care less because she thinks this Scott brother is so much better for her.

She smiles up at him and takes one more step closer to him. He kisses her then because she's pretty much just said that she wanted him to. Her lips are soft and the taste of strawberries overcomes him. Her tongue slips over his and his fingers trace along her jaw.

It's everything he's ever imagined and more. She's everything he's ever imagined and more.

They break away and he's searching for any sign of regret in her eyes. There isn't any and she's smiling and he's smiling and they're both just happy.

"And spiders." She says quietly looking up at him, her hand on his chest. "I'm terribly afraid of spiders." He only chuckles and sends her a nod before leaning down and kissing her again.

It's then that he thinks of his brother and he doesn't want to be this guy. He doesn't want to be the guy she cheats on her boyfriend with. He wants to _be_ her boyfriend. But she's kissing him right now, and he honestly can't _not _ask. It's killing him to know.

"What about Nathan?"

She shakes her head, looking down at her hand on his chest and it just feels right there. "I'm not afraid of Nathan." She says boldly looking into his eyes, realizing the double meaning. She's not afraid of Nathan. She's not afraid to be alone anymore. And she's not afraid to break up with him.

He can't help but smile. "Come on. I'll walk you home."

He doesn't hesitate to take her hand and together they make their way to her house. They talk about everything in the short walk. Music, movies, them. Mostly about them.

She tells him that tomorrow she's going to break up with Nathan and normally he would have scoffed, but he knows this time this is it between them. And he's ecstatic. He tells her Haley's never going to believe this when he tells her and Peyton laughs because it's probably true.

She's crossing that line into what might be safe territory for the first time in her life and she feels good about that. She wants to meet Haley and be friends with his friends and she just wants to be with him. When she's with him none of it matters, not Brooke or Nathan or any cheerleader.

He's this guy that was everywhere and then one day he popped up out of nowhere and maybe he _can_ change her life. Maybe he already has.

They're standing outside of her house and it's late. Neither is tired and neither is sure they're going to be able to sleep tonight. He just wants morning to come and school to start so he can be with her. It's probably the first time she's even excited about going to school.

"Tomorrow." She promises. Tomorrow. It's when she's breaking up with Nathan. It's when she's going to walk down the hall holding Lucas' hand and not care about the stares being thrown at her. It's when she's going to kiss him public. It's the start of everything for her and for him.

"You think twenty-four hours can change your life?" He asks with a boyish smirk.

"God, I hope so." She mumbles leaning up to kiss him one last time before she really has to go inside. He holds her by the hips for just a second longer and she hopes that becomes a habit of his.

"Tomorrow." He says finally letting go of her and watching her as she walks up to her porch. She turns back to send him a smile and a small wave and he returns it before she closes the door.

He really can't wait for tomorrow.


End file.
